Language Creates: A Buttermilk Moment in Peru
Early last week, we arrived in Urubamba, Perú—our final destination on this trip.
We rented a beautiful, serene Airbnb because finding a hotel that allows a family of five in one room is a challenge. In cities like Bogotá, Lima, Cusco, and Aguas Calientes, there was no room for the girls to run freely in a backyard. So arriving here in this small, peaceful town felt like an oasis.
From the day we arrived, a few dogs started stopping by —ranch-style, farm dogs who looked well-fed and roamed freely around the homes and fields nearby. The girls were overjoyed. They've been missing Sasha (our dog), so furry visitors felt like a gift.
Right away, they named them: Buttermilk, French Toast, Cookie, Sam, Eddy, Rusty, and Dusty.
The dogs would come and go, lounging in the yard, keeping their distance, well-behaved and calm. We didn't know their temperament or vaccination history so we had one rule: no touching the dogs. Nonetheless the girls would shout out their names with excitement whenever they visited.
Then, the day before we were leaving, I was bringing in the laundry and casually said, “Hey there, Buttermilk,” as I walked by the little white one.
As I heard the words come out, I paused and laughed. Did I really just say Buttermilk? A name completely made up by the girls—but now I was saying it like it was real. And I smiled because of course… language creates.
It reminded me of the playdough exercise we did during Freedom Unleashed. I'd say a word, and you'd shape and create it with your hands. That's what the girls had done with this dog. They shaped my world with their language until it became my reality, too.
Language is powerful.
It shapes how we see and experience the world.
It creates both real and imagined meaning.
It influences our emotions.
It even alters our state of being.
Whether in family, business, spirituality, or love—language is the source of how we experience life.
If you want to shift your world, start with your words.
A person who thinks, “This isn't fair. They're doing this to me,”
will live in a completely different world than someone who thinks,
“Let me seek to understand. What am I not seeing?”
Both realities are created in language.
What are you calling things in your world right now? Are your words growing connection, possibility, what it is you want - or something else?
Freedom Unleashed Takeaway:
Language Creates - it shapes your world
So I'll leave you with this:
Notice your language, what are you speaking into existence today – internally and externally? Your words are not just labels – they're seeds. Speak into the life you want to live.
